In the ”why NOT me...” series I focus on life’s challenges and the mutual conditions that affect us all. This could be grief, fear, anxiety or life changes. I strive to explore the universal stories pertaining to each individual life, thereby drawing attention to the periods in our lives that are rarely presented to the outside world. 

My preferred genre to express these vivid narratives is the self-portrait. By placing myself in the frame, I feel that my way of taking pictures becomes more honest – especially since the photos and stories are founded on themes from my own life.

My starting point is the staged photo. The images are depicted as a memory or interpretation of an experience. I work with recognisable facial expressions throughout. Symbols also play an important role in the self-portrait. A bird, a fishing net, my son or a petrol can – details that allow the viewer to the opportunity to interpret their own experience of, and understanding of the images. 

”why NOT me...” is, among others things, about the transience of womanhood, and the hope of preserving one’s womanliness – as age, life changes and various scars begin to make their mark on body and mind. The portraits depict our stories of life lived, and testify to the conditions that life has presented us with.

If you are to live up to the ideals of female beauty, then the traces must be removed or reconstructed, thus losing significance. I value a woman’s aging and the changes in her body, even though it may not be in line with the general consensus on the feminine beauty ideal in society.

The majority of the photos are taken in hotel rooms, or places that I have stayed for a short while. The hotels and places serve as temporary homes. They become a symbol of something transient. A temporary place for a temporary period. Placing myself in a hotel room, for example, means that I have been moved out of my ordinary life. A feeling that is not unlike the one I feel when faced with difficult times. I am in transit in my own life, just as I’m in the world for a limited period of time.

- Linda Hansen